Moscow has called on the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to take measures to free the two Russian journalists captured near the town of Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine.

Russia strongly condemns the detention of LifeNews journalists Oleg
Sidyakin and Marat Saichenko by Kiev forces in the city of
Kramatorsk, the country’s permanent representative to the OSCE,
Andrey Kelin, said.

“I immediately contacted the Swiss representative to the OSCE
(Switzerland is presiding over the organization in 2014) and the
representative on freedom of the media, Dunja Mijatovic, and
requested them to take immediate steps for the release of the
journalists,” Kelin told Itar-Tass news agency.

Earlier, Kiev acknowledged that Oleg Sidyakin and Marat Saichenko
were detained by the Ukrainian military.

The last time the crew established contact with the editorial
board was at around 09:50 GMT (13:50 Moscow time) on Sunday, when
they reached a checkpoint near the town of Kramatorsk.

Several hours later a photo of the handcuffed journalists
appeared on social networks.

Locals recognized the place in the photo as territory belonging
to the military airport near Kramatorsk, LifeNews reported.

News Media Holding, which owns LifeNews, has appealed to Russian
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, asking him to help with the
release of the journalists, the news outlet’s website reported.

Reporter Sidyakin and cameraman Saichenko were performing their
professional duties, covering events in southeastern Ukraine,
when they “went missing,” the channel said in a
statement.

The only thing Sidyakin managed to text was that “things look
bad.”

After receiving the SMS message, the office immediately called
Sidyakin, who accepted the call, but could not speak. He kept the
phone connected, however, so that Moscow could hear that the
journalists were being interrogated.

Since the connection was lost, all attempts to get in touch with
the crew have been in vain.

A man who accompanied the LifeNews crew confirmed that the
journalists were being questioned by armed men, presumably the
Ukrainian military.

The same LifeNews journalists came under fire from Kiev's army
last week, along with RT's video agency crew.

Sidyakin used to report for LifeNews within Russia. He covered
the Volgograd terrorist acts last December. He was then sent to
Ukraine to cover the political crisis in the country. He also
reported from Crimea during the process of reunification with
Russia.

While working in Kiev during the clashes, Sidyakin sustained a
gunshot wound in the leg but never stopped his live broadcast.

Saicheko is a prominent photographer and cameraman who used to
work in Libya and Syria. In the West, he is primarily known as
the first person who managed to take photos of oligarch Mikhail
Khodorkovsky while he was in prison.